Ardnamurchan
325 Hope Street
Cross the road from the Theatre Royal for some Scottish cuisine with balance and big flavours. There’s Speyside beef stovies, scallops from Barra, while the venison stew uses meat from Ardnamurchan Estate itself. Comfort food done right. Market menu until 5.45pm.

Kelp
114 Cowcaddens Road
Small-plates seafood spot at the very top of the city centre with a menu that’s playfully composed and caringly prepared. Expect sardines bolognese on toast, Shetland coley going toe-to-toe with lime and jalapeño or samphire slaw with a nudge of Middle-Eastern spice. Market menu runs until 5.45pm.

Little Vietnam
24 Renfrew Street
The zings, pops and aromatics of Vietnamese cooking are on excellent form at Little Vietnam, where an expansive menu goes well beyond familiar classics. Try a breaded pork chop with rice noodles, pickled veg and fried egg, or maybe sizzling, steamy hotplates of anything from beef to chicken, frog to eel. The pho is solid, the spring rolls firmly packed and propped up by sweet peanut dip. 

Namu Korean Kitchen
321 Hope Street
A youngish crowd populates this place where some of Korean cuisine’s best exports are well-executed and still manage to feel exciting. There’s jajangmyeon (udon noodles in Korean black bean sauce), banging bibimbap with a properly crunchy crust of rice and a piercing yellow egg yolk, and the umami revelation that is kimchi pancakes. Wash it all down with a somaek, a Korean lager spiked with soju. 

Rishi’s Indian Aroma
61 Bath Street
A local favourite doing South Indian classics (and the rest) from its subterranean base. Dishes aren’t afraid to be mild and sweet. The Malabar fish curry and any of the dosas are well worth trying, as is the tapas lunch menu if it’s an afternoon show you’re off to.

Seoul Korean BBQ
24 Cambridge Street 
Things happen quickly here, so it’s a good shout if you’re cutting it fine for curtain-up. The tables have roasting plates for the full Korean barbecue experience, but quicker pre-theatre and lunchtime diners are equally well catered-to. Dishes bristle with the punchy heat of kimchi and gochujang, be it pork bibimbap or spicy stir-fried fish cakes. 

Also try... a bit of front-room dining in The Wee Curry Shop or quirkier street food options at Masala Twist. Both of Maki & Ramen’s sites are right between the theatres too, for some of the best sushi and ramen in the city.

This TipList is taken from Eat & Drink 365 Glasgow, our sister mag recommending the best in restaurants, bars, cafés and more. Want a copy? It’s available online or across all good stockists in Glasgow.